Conventional powered golf carts are typically open-sided vehicles having a body and a hard-top roof supported by four support posts mounted to the body. The open sides make it easy for people to get in and out of the cart. The open-sided carts, however, do not provide much protection for occupants against wind, rain, insects, or other adverse conditions. Covers that fit over golf carts have been designed to more fully enclose the carts and better protect occupants from such adverse conditions.
Conventional soft-sided golf cart covers typically have a roof panel that extends over the roof of the cart, and side panels that drape down over the sides of the cart's body and hang in tension from the roof panel. Some covers are four-sided covers designed for use with carts that do not have a permanent windshield. These covers typically include a front panel that hangs in tension from the roof panel and drapes over the front of the golf cart. The roof panels, however, cover rain gutters and handholds molded into the cart's roof, thereby rendering the rain gutters and handholds substantially useless. In addition, the roof panel is typically the first portion of the cover to wear out over time because the roof panel has the greatest amount of UV exposure.
One problem encountered by conventional covers is that golf carts are available in many different models and are manufactured by a variety of companies. Golf carts do not all have uniform shapes and sizes. As a result, different cart covers are designed and sized to fit over different golf cart models, thereby resulting in cover manufacturers, wholesalers, or retailers having to stock multiple different models of golf cart covers. Accordingly, there is a need for a durable, affordable golf cart cover suitable for mass production and tailored for use with a majority of golf carts of the same class (e.g., single seat, two-person golf cart) commercially produced by the largest manufacturers.